Dingling Tomb

Beijing Attractions

Introduction to Dingling Tombs

Dingling Tomb is one of the three tombs located at The Ming Tombs which are open to the public. The tomb is famous for its underground palace and the burial of Emperor Wanli and his two empresses. Of all Ming Dynasty emperors, Emperor Wanli reigned for 48 years and is considered one of the longest reigning emperors in Chinese history. Historical documents have stated that the cost of constructing Dingling Tomb cost a staggering 8 Million taels of Silver.

To reach the tomb you will need to take a 15 minute walk from the Dingling Tomb entrance. The underground palace is accessed by 8 flights of stairs. Dingling Tomb is the third largest tomb after Changling Tomb and Yongling Tomb. However, the architecture and luxurious interior of Dingling Tomb surpasses Changling and Yongling. To this day Dingling Tomb is the only tombs which has been excavated and open for research. Covering an area of 1,195 square meters, the underground palace is 27 meters in depth and is made of 5 chambers. The construction of the chamber was completely made of stone with no use of beams or pillars.

Within the rear chamber of the underground palace the most precious objects were discovered. There were a total of 26 red wooden boxes that was filled with 3,000 funeral burial possessions. The most valuable items found was Emperor Wanli’s golden crown and the empresses phoenix crowns. The details and luxurious jewels and pearls used to decorate the crown were exquisite. One of the most spectacular crowns was made with 5,000 pearls and over 100 precious jewels. Tourists can now see these treasured items in the exhibition halls of Dinling Tomb. .